Back in the tent..

Everything has the time and space..

There was no regret when I realised that my 'active' camping days were over. Not because I got married, or have children, but simply because life changes..

As time goes by, I notice that every time we are on family vacation in the outdoors, I feel happy and free, like coming home to the place where I belong.. and then, I start to to feel that I want to pass my skills and knowledge about the outdoor life to my children, knowing that such things will be their assets in the future. However, setting up the time and planning the actual camp is a big challenge.

One day, last year, a friend (my eldest son's friend's mum), who owns a life-skills training course sets up a camp for school children. At first, she set up a camp mid last year (2012), but the camp had to be cancelled for some reasons. Then, she set up another camp which took place last weekend (29-30 June 2013). The camp will cover character building, photography and writing skills. My eldest son was very excited about it. After discussing it with my husband, we agreed that he would stay home with Aza and Kyra, while I would accompany Ariq in the camp.

Waiting for the time, Ariq already had a few plans for this holiday. He wanted to visit my grandfather's grave at the National Hero Cemetary (my grandfather was a soldier during the independence war, therefore he had the right to be buried there). My parents agreed to take Ariq there, so Ariq stayed for a few days at my parents' home.

Prior to that, Ariq had his mid-year drum concert, which I will write about in another post. He also had a few 'appointments' with his friends to play together.. so, it has been a busy holiday for Ariq.

I delayed enrolling Ariq in the camp, since I wasn't sure whether he would be up for it when the time comes. However, when my friend called me to confirm whether Ariq would be coming, Ariq confirmed that he was coming. So, I officially enrolled him.

The morning of the camp, I found out that most of Ariq's friends' mums had cancelled staying overnight, therefore the cabins we originally booked were cancelled. There was only one other mum (apart from the one who was organising the camp), and we agreed to share a tent, if there was one available. There were a few other parents staying overnight too, ones whose kids were not Ariq's school friends. We were so glad that there were tents available for us at the last minute.

Parents' tents couldn't be too close to the kid's camp site, so, the camp site people set up our tents across the path from the kid's camp site. We could see the kids quite easily, but they wouldn't 'feel' our presence because of the little distance.

The other mum staying overnight with me is a very energetic person. She likes walking and riding bike. As soon as the kids were comfortable with the camp instructors, we (the other mum and I) quickly decided to start our own adventure. Meanwhile, the camp staff was organising our tents. They were supposed to be ready around 2pm.

The camp site was located in 'Taman Buah Mekarsari' (Mekarsari Fruit Park). This park is where lots of fruit variety are grown for educational, conservation and sales purposes. For Ariq and his friends, Mekarsari is not a strange place. The park is one of the most visited as school tour destinations. 

To me, however, it was my first time there, and I was amazed by the size and the beauty of the whole place. Mekarsari is so wide, green and clean. It feels like being in a perfect environment.

We took the train ride around the park. The ride started at the front entrance part of the park, and ended at the lake, which was the rear part of the park. Visitors are allowed to stay as long as they want around the lake, and they can take the train back to the front entrance anytime they want.

We took the train back around 2pm and unpacked in our tent. After that, we felt like walking around the park again. We walked to the lake again, taking a few turns to see what's behind the trees and to take pictures.

The walk to the lake didn't take as long as we thought it would be, although due to the stops we made, it was almost sunset when we reached the lake. As we were taking pictures, a security guard approached us and told us that the last train was leaving.. Then, we realised that we were the last people at the lake.. hahaha...

As we were arriving back at the camp site, a family of Ariq's friend arrived too. They occupied a tent near us. This mum used to go hiking and camping (even more active than me). We ended up chatting almost all night. We even came up with the idea of another camp for the kids..

We finally went to bed around 2am, although the quietness didn't last long..

The excited kids couldn't stay asleep for too long.. They woke up at 3am and started playing around the fire. So, no more sleep for the rest of us, haha..

After sunrise, my friend who was organising the camp told me that Ariq had a slight fever. He couldn't join the morning walk. After breakfast, Ariq was feeling much better, though. I guess the fever was just a result of lack of good night sleep.

The kids had 'FUN' farming activities.. which also concluded the camp. The other mum, who stayed in the tent with me, suggested to walk to a nearby garden and take pictures there. The garden was beautiful. We managed to take a few good pictures, despite the strong sun.

Then, we started packing, while the kids were having fun! After lunch, we headed home. Falling asleep in the car..

All in all, it was a great time. It wasn't a rough camp, but I'm still glad that I had the chance to do it.. and with Ariq.. Now I'm sure that I can do it again, hopefully with Ariq, Aza and Kyra..

-See you again-

Gunung Mas Spring (Mata Air Gunung Mas)

Last minute trips are usually the best ones! At least, for my family, they are.. :-D

My husband and I both love nature and open space to have a refreshing family time. However, we have slightly different ideas on the type of 'nice' camping for the family..

I grew up a girl guide, so, anyone can guess that I love sleeping in a tent, somewhere in the forest, up on the mountain..

While my husband, enjoyed a nice holiday, close enough to nature to enjoy it, and close enough to necessities, to ensure comfort..

Both of us believe that there are always a midway for us, the question is.. Where???

It happens that, one of my husband's good friends from high school married a guy who used to be a boy scout. They are pretty much the opposite of us. The husband loved outdoor activities -he even loves the things that I don't dare try, such as paragliding-. While the wife (my husband's friend from high school), is pretty much like my husband.. Well, friends are bound to be alike.. :-D

So far, we have gone on vacation trips together, and our kids get along well together, so, we try to get together every once in a while. The funny thing is, every time we try to make a well-planned trip, weeks ahead.. The trip just doesn't come true..

On the other hand, every time we made a plan in the spirit of the moment, about three days ahead of the planned departure.. just like that, the trip comes true! So far, we have gone to Anyer (a beach about four hours away from Jakarta), Ciwidey (strawberry plantation near Bandung, about 3 hours away from Jakarta), and several night outs around Jakarta..

To cut the story short..

On Thursday, my husband told me that we were going to the mountainside with his friend's family.

My husband only said that it was at the peak of the mountain. Not a well-known place, but our friends' kids always have a good time there. So, I was looking forward to it!

We left home a little bit after 7.00 in the morning, in the hope to beat the traffic. We rounded up at the rest area just outside the inner city toll road, before entering the outer city toll road. We bought snacks and other little things there, then we headed to the mountainside.

Yess.. Some fresh air.. Away from the city!!

The kids were full from big breakfast at home, and they were calm and happy in the car. Ariq kept asking "Can we open the window for cool breeze yet?"

My husband and I kept saying, "Not yet! It's still the toll road."

There were slow traffic at several places, but nothing significant. We arrived at the spring at around 10.30.

The surprise was, the place was very crowded! Apparently, a group of school students were using the place for their study tour. The spring staff told us that the group were checking out around noon, so, we could go for a walk around the tea plantation, or go to the higher ground for paragliding watching.

We chose to watch the paragliding practice.

The air was calm with no rough wind, so, people could have a nice time gliding. The gliders were going round and round in the air, higher and higher as the warm air took them up. Some of them went past each other, as if they were sailing in the ocean.. It was a very relaxing sight. I'm sure the people who were gliding were feeling very relaxed too..

The boys were excited too see the gliders take off and started flying, but more than that, they were just too happy to be in an open space.. Well, I was feeling very happy and free to be in an open space..

After watching a few gliders take off, suddenly, Kyra was watching the next glider with a very intense look in her eyes. I saw her nodding a few times, while saying to herself, "Bisa! (can do).. Bisa!"  Then, she started counting, "1.. 2.. 3.. Terbang (fly)."

We were grinning for a second, then we shouted and ran, as we realised what she was doing next. She was running towards the edge of the cliff, to imitate the glider!!

Our friend (the husband), saw Kyra running past him, and caught her. Following that, my husband who had caught up, picked Kyra up and swung her around above his head, "There.. you are flying..!"

Kyra was excited and laughing happily. Of course she didn't realise, that paragliding needs a parachute.. She thought that she could just jump off the cliff and fly around in midair..

The good thing was, we were not standing too close to the edge. At first, we backed away from the cliff, because the boys got carried away watching the gliders and a couple of times, they didn't realise that they were in the gliders' way during take off.

We just didn't think that it was Kyra, who would actually run to the cliff to 'practice' paragliding..

We had a good time watching the paragliding practice, and we also took some nice pictures around the area.. ;-)

At around 11.30, everyone started to feel hungry. There was a little snack shop nearby, selling instant noodle and drinks. So, we sat down there and had something to eat before the 'real' lunch. We were planning to have rice and fried fish for lunch at the spring.

The little snack shop had a low wall, so we were sitting on a bench, leaning on a wall/table, and watching the scenery at the same time.. It felt like having a picnic!

After snack, we headed back to the spring, right when the school students were checking out. Then, the spring was quiet.. A few families were still there, but much less busy than the morning.

We ordered lunch, and while waiting, Ariq, Aza and Kyra went swimming in the spring. While our friends's kids stayed at the cottage with their mum and me.

My husband called me to have a look at the kids, and I took several nice pictures of them..

I didn't prepare swimming equipment for the kids, as I didn't think that we would be staying the whole day.. My bad.. :-D .. I still brought a couple of change clothes for each of them though, so, problem is solved!

The water flow of the spring was quite hard. There were four pools, forming a row. The first and the last ones are the fish ponds. The ponds are so clear and the fishes are very big and beautiful. When I was looking at them, one of them looked back at me, and the others were swimming around, close to me..

The middle pools are the swimming pools, with a bridge separating the two pools. These ones are where people swim and play. Despite the fact that these two pools are positioned in the middle of two fish ponds, there is no fishy smell at all. The water flows heavily from the first fish pond, passing the two swimming pools, to the last pond, and out to the gutter, which was also very clean and clear.. It was just a beautiful sight, watching clean and clear water runs that fast..

When I went back to the cottage, our lunch was already there. Freshly cooked rice, fried fish, freshly picked vegetables and freshly ground traditional chilli sauce (sambal terasi). One bite of the fried fish, dipped in the chilli sauce, and I couldn't stop eating.. It had been too long since we had a traditional meal, in the mountainside.. It reminded me of Ciamis, my mother's village in the West Java..


Not long after, the kids came back. They had showers, changed into clean-dry clothes, and then lunch..

Along with the kids, my husband also came back from the spring. He was all wet, when he was not planning to go into the water!

It turned out that there was a little child (about Kyra's age), who wandered away from his parents, and went swimming by himself. The spring pool was quite deep for children that age, so the child was drowning.. and my husband jumped into the water to get him..

My husband completely forgot that he had his Blackberry in his jeans pocket and his Ipad in his sling bag. Fortunately, the sling bag was waterproof, so the Ipad was safe.. The Blackberry was a different story, though.. It was soaking wet!! He couldn't use it for the rest of the trip..

I'm just glad that Ariq is always ready to accompany Kyra.. including taking her around the spring pool on his float.. :-)

Anyway.. After lunch, the kids went to the paragliding landing area, to watch the gliders make their landing.

Our friend (the husband) was practicing grounding. He is in the paragliding club and he goes there, with his family, to practice every Sunday. When the other kids went back to the cottage, Ariq stayed with our friend until the end of practice.

When they came back, the kids played around the cottage, while the adults were packing up to go home. -well, the adults minus my husband-.. because he was turned into a carrousel pony by the kids.. :-D

Suddenly it started raining very hard, and Kyra quietly walked to the balcony.. As expected, she was quietly enjoying the rain..

Then, Aza said that he was hungry. So, we decided to let the kids have early dinner before we head home.

We left the spring at 5.30. It was really good that the kids had their dinner. Not long after we left the spring, Ariq and Aza were already fast asleep in the car. Kyra followed them to the dreamland about an hour after. Traffic was slow, and we arrived home at 08.45

We came home tired and sleepy, but still, it was another great outdoor weekend for us..

Can't wait for another one.. ;-)

A Walk of Memory

It was already late in the afternoon when I was walking on the path along the river. The sky was getting darker and the breeze was getting cooler.

All in a sudden, I remember the times when I was hiking along a pathway up on the mountain, with the rest of the 'Lily' girls.. talking, laughing, singing and cheering out our team yells..

It was nice of the memory to come by at such a nice late afternoon..

Then, as the surrounding went quieter, the sound of the river grew louder. The grass and the flowers were dancing softly to the wind.

The scenery reminded me of the moments before sunset at the camps. Sitting outside the tent, around the cooking fire, waiting for dinner to be ready. Laughing about our silly slips and falls during the day hike. Working out a plan for tomorrow..

I never forget, how good we were as a team. Our team work has become my inspiration. Our achievements have been my life-long motivations.. 

Nearing the end of the path, I started to hear the sounds of the night creatures. Roots, twigs and leaves started to form the shape of forest beings.. 

Unformed shadows brought me the memory of nights at the camps. Cramping in the tent, whispering, pointing at each other, giggling, in the dim of the lantern, until we finally fell asleep..

Then, our restful sleep would be paused by the wake up call for the night walk. We would hike on the same path. Walking past the same trees, twigs, leaves, flowers and grass. The only difference was the darkness around us..

Somehow, it was always enough to amplify the effects and results.. One call, and we would stop to wait. One call, and we would catch each other's hand. One call, was all we needed to keep each other safe.. By sunrise, we had become a stronger team..

What a late afternoon walk.. What a great memory.. My memory of 'Lily' girls.. All in a late afternoon walk..

'Lily' was the name of my patrol group in the Scout & Guide Brigade in Junior High School. We went on camps and hikes together, and won several medals as the best patrol.

Our patrol was solid for the whole three years of Junior High School, until the time came for us to go our own ways when we graduated and chose different Senior High Schools.


 -20 December 2011-